Corinthian Colleges lured students to its high-priced courses with the promise of an escape from poverty. But mired in tens of thousands of dollars of debt they will likely never be able to repay, many now feel more stuck than ever.

The Illinois attorney general claims two student loan consolidation firms, First American Tax Defense and Broadsword Student Advantage, charge hundreds of dollars up front for products that don’t exist or are available for free.

The latest study from the New American Foundation, released today, found that about 40% of the more than $1 trillion in outstanding student loans went to finance graduate and professional degrees. And thanks to changes in repayment terms, the federal government is likely to end up bankrolling many graduate degrees.

According to Department of Education data, large percentages of business administration, culinary arts, interior design, and other programs would be deemed failing or at-risk under the Obama administration’s new guidelines.

Regulations proposed Friday will crack down on programs with low graduation rates and high student debt. Many of those are at for-profit schools like the University of Phoenix and Everest College, which get huge chunks of their revenue from federal dollars.